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US: Stocks open lower

[NEW YORK] US stocks opened lower on Thursday, following European bourses downward after European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi called on eurozone countries to immediately enact fiscal stimulus.

"The cost of delay is simply too high," Mr Draghi told the Brussels Economic Forum, one day after the ECB unleased a new bond-buying program to try to spur the tepid eurozone economy.

"Fiscal policy should work with, not against, monetary policy." US oil prices dipped a bit, but remained above US$50 a barrel, resulting in declines for shares of ExxonMobil, Chevron and other oil-linked equities.

Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 17,941.84, down 0.4 per cent.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.5 per cent at 2,109.68, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.5 per cent at 4,950.73.